


i won't say i'm in love

by lexifrog52



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Chatting & Messaging, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-18
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:48:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,664
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25351915
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lexifrog52/pseuds/lexifrog52
Summary: Oikawa was not a genius, but he thought he had enough common sense not to drunk message a random guy on the internet about his fat, massive crush on Iwaizumi Hajime, the new ace playing on his university's volleyball team.Iwaizumi Hajime wasn't stupid by any means, but he thought he was smart enough not to fall in love with a random man on the internet who liked to talk about aliens and evaded any attempts to talk about who they actually were.But well, he wasn't actually in love. Right?
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 10
Kudos: 55





	1. no chance, no way

**Author's Note:**

> hey hey hey i hope you like it :)

Oikawa knew he was stupid. It was hard  _ not  _ to know you were stupid when you were drunkenly texting a random stranger at two in the morning. 

Well, not exactly a random stranger. Someone you’d talk to for… maybe, three months? He didn’t know anymore. But not a stranger. 

Or maybe he wasn’t stupid, just lacking common sense. Yeah, that made more sense. Sense. Did he even have any?

**space_setter: fjkdslfnds heees reallie cute dudde**

**iwaspik3s: Um, who?**

**space_setter: thiss gui on my teeam for volleeybal,,, didd u know; i play**

**iwaspik3s: Dude, are you drunk right now? Are you okay?**

**space_setter: ofcourse imm not durnk,, god who doo u thunk i amm???? :P**

**iwaspik3es: Yes, you completely aren’t drunk, one hundred percent. Repeating myself, are you good? Is someone picking you up?**

**space_setter: YES leave meee alone, whyy are u texxting me?? whyy wonn’t he text me?**

He briefly thought maybe it wasn’t a good idea to mention how much he liked another guy when he was drunk out of his mind, but it worked for him. 

Oikawa set the phone down as he was offered another drink while he lounged on a rather lumpy couch. He took it gratefully, he hands a little numb and uncoordinated and he blinked and took a massive swing. Why wouldn’t Iwaizumi text him? Why was he all alone at the party drinking himself into a stupor while trying to forget about how fucking good he looked during practice? 

Well this was pathetic, and Tooru Oikawa was not pathetic, but sometimes he could indulge himself and be a little more… pitiful than normal. 

Oikawa was attractive enough, and he was funny too. He had done so much to try and gain his attention and for what when he barely looked his way? Was he straight? Was Oikawa just annoying and not good enough for him? That was most likely it, because even if no one else knew, Oikawa was extremely inadequate. 

Ugh, now he couldn’t stop thinking of him. His strong jawline, and his dark eyes that were so serious and handsome. Oikawa ran his fingers through his hair, guzzling the drink down, some of the melon flavored liquid running down his chin. He wiped it off with the back of his hand, his eyes lidded and hazy as he stared at nothing in the dark room. 

He couldn’t stop thinking of that guy. He hadn’t had a crush this bad since high school, when he had liked the ace from another high level volleyball team. It seemed he had a thing for them. A thing for aces, of all people, which was stupid and pathetic in itself, and once again, Oikawa was  _ not  _ pathetic even if he was lacking in a lot of other serious departments. 

With a loud groan he got out of his rather uncomfortable position, tripping a little as he got up. The loud music did nothing for the headache that was starting to form, and he grabbed onto the friend that had invited him there, Hanamaki, with an iron grip. 

“I wannna to go homeee.” Oikawa’s words slurred as he heavily leaned on his friend, his vision blurring as the ground came rather close to his eyes. 

“Oh my God dude, how much have you fucking drank?” Hanamaki’s eyes widened, supporting him by holding him at the shoulders. Oikawa smiled lazily.

“Makkkki, you should know better than to ask questions you… you don’t want to know the answers to,” Oikawa whined, before giggling and covering his mouth as he started to hiccup. 

“Holy shit,” Hanamaki whispered, waving over Matsukawa who had the same slack jaw Hanamki did when he first saw Oikawa. He let out another high pitched laugh as he saw his face. 

“Aww, Mattsun!! You must be staring in awe at my- my fabulous beauty.” Oikawa made a kissy face, making rather disgusting sounds that might have been kissing ones if he wasn’t about to tip over if someone let go of him. Even Drunk Oikawa couldn’t resist showing off his famous trashy personality. He raised the red solo cup to his lips, anticipating the drink. 

“No.” Matsukawa plucked the drink from his hands, and Oikawa pouted and wailed. 

“Mattsun, Makki, stop ruiiningmy fun!” Oikawa stomped, the other boys looking at each other in exasperation. 

“Oh my God we have practice tomorrow.” Hanamaki threw his arm over his shoulder and put his hand around his waist, dragging him out of the house party as Oikawa’s phone buzzed and buzzed in his pocket. 

“Oh my God we have practice tomorrow.” Matsukawa echoed, rummaging through his pockets to find his keys. 

“Aw, while your concern is ador- adorable I’ll be fine! Don’t worry about littleeee old meee!” Oikawa said cheerfully, stumbling as he followed Hanamaki out. “I’ll be fine!”

✮

He was not fine. Walking was a pain, talking was a pain, and setting the ball and serving was torture. Oikawa was pretty sure this was the worst he had ever done in practice since he was in middle school, no, scratch that, elementary.

The volleyball flying towards his head and hitting it with a resounding thump nearly made him want to crumble to the ground. He almost did, but he held himself up through pure pride.

“Oi, Shittykawa! What the hell is up with you?” Iwaizumi crossed his arms, glaring at him at another failed toss. 

Oikawa turned to stare at him, pointedly ignoring the way his muscles bulged when he stood like that with a large smile. 

“Nothing of course! Just an off day, we’re all allowed to have them. Just because you’re jealous that you have more than me doesn’t mean you have to be rude Iwa-chan!” It came out more viciously than he meant, and Oikawa inwardly flinched at Iwaizumi’s deathly expression. 

“If this next one fails I’ll beat whatever brains you have left in your empty little head out.” He huffed and turned around. 

“You don’t have to be so mean Iwa-chan~” Talking louder than a whisper was a feeling worse than death but he pushed onwards with a cheer in his voice. “What’s got you down in the dumps?” He stuck his tongue out, ready to throw him another toss. 

It was perfect this time (maybe Iwaizumi’s threats  _ occasionally  _ worked), and the force he hit it with came from pure anger. Oikawa had only known him for a few months after he transferred to his university, but he liked to think he was observant and could tell something was bugging him other than himself. 

Iwaizumi grunted. 

“Love life problems? Is your girlfriend begging poor Iwa-chan to spend more time with her instead of the fabulous me?” Oikawa smiled carefully, not letting his heart sink in the slightest while he waited for the answer. He might have one of the worst headaches in his entire life, but he was still an expert at needling Iwaizumi. 

“Stay the hell out of it Idiotkawa.” Iwaizumi practically snarled, and he blinked, feeling his heart that he had been so carefully holding up, drop to the floor. 

Oh. 

So, yes, most likely a girlfriend, which was most likely straight (he could be bi, but still, relationship), and he had struck a rather large nerve which, yes, he had meant to, but not as hard as he did. 

He crafted a grin on his features, shrugging nonchalantly even as his eyes burned and his throat threatened to thicken. “I take that as a yes. Don’t worry, I don’t mind sharing you.”  _ Yes I do! _ “Your words wound me. Be a little nicer, I’m just trying to be a good friend Iwa-chan.” Friend. Oikawa added a slight whine to his voice, hoping it would mask any other emotion in his voice. He threw him another set that Iwaizumi hit perfectly. God, why was he so fucking hot. 

Iwaizumi smacked his shoulder. “Just throw another one. Today is not the day.” Oikawa swallowed and nodded. He wasn’t a genius, but he wasn’t stupid either. 

They spent the rest of practice in silence, Oikawa’s head and heart hurting, and Iwaizumi smacking the ball as hard as he could. Every spike was another blow to his heart that he pointedly ignored. 

Hanamaki pulls him aside in the club room afterwards, his eyes soft and perceiving. Oikawa sometimes hated how he could pick up on his behaviours. Well, more than sometimes. It was infuriating how well he knew him.

“You need to learn when not to push dude. I’m sure he’ll be fine after a day.” Hanamaki said it so gently Oikawa’s back straightened and his gaze hardened. 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about Makki.” He smiled, and turned away. It was so much easier to pretend. If he pretended people liked him. 

Oikawa didn’t like pity aside from when he liked to wallow in it. Especially when it was completely unnecessary, because truthfully, Oikawa could pretend he wasn’t in love and get over it. Oh, love.

_ Love. _

It wasn’t love, most definitely not. Oikawa just had a habit of getting infatuated, and love was too strong of a word to be used for anyone other than family members really. He just had to try hard enough and it would vanish. 

As long as he didn’t say it, it didn’t exist. If he pretended not to feel anything warm and fuzzy when he looked at Iwaizumi, or pretended that he didn’t feel his cheeks burn when he was changing in the club room, or pretended he didn’t grin genuinely when he congratulated him on a good set or play and that it didn’t stir something in him, it wouldn’t exist.

Especially if his feelings weren’t reciprocated. 


	2. you swoon, you sigh

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> was iwaizumi really this oblivious? yeah

Iwaizumi Hajime was a fucking idiot. Falling in love (too strong, more like strong like) with someone over the internet? Someone who’s name he didn’t even know? What kind of fucking moron does that? What kind of stupid guy messages them constantly praying for a response? Apparently him. 

Especially when they were drunk out of their mind and talking about someone else? It was embarrassing, and far too late to change. 

Hajime had asked for his name before, wanting something  _ other  _ than just a dorky name like space_setter to call them by. When he’d asked, he’d just gotten a blushing emoji, and a text saying that it would ruin the mystery. He’d laughed, and decided to stop pushing it after the excuses kept piling up always about how it would ruin the fun. 

He couldn’t help but wonder if it was because he was ugly, which yes, he had been curious about. If that was the reason he was so distant about his personal life. Nothing wrong with having standards. But even if Hajime didn’t think he was attractive he felt he would still like him, he thought. His personality was just good for him. 

Hajime liked the way the guy on the other end of the screen would dork out about shitty sci-fi movies, and send him essays as to why he thought extraterrestrial life truly existed. He liked the way he would never be too serious, and tease him, and would tell him things he said he had never told anyone because he trusted him. He liked the way he constantly raved about milk bread (which he abhorred), and would always insist one day if they ever met each other he’d make him like it. 

Of course they never did actually meet. Hajime had brought it up a few times, only to be shut down. The most the other guy had let him say was his age (20), and if he was in university. Space_setter had said the same thing, and when asked about his degree it was,  **“nuh uh, we could ruin the mystery ( >m<),” ** which tended to be the same iteration of any answer to his personal life. He thought it was ridiculous, but he was cool putting up with it because he liked him that much. 

The most he had ever found out was that he played volleyball, which wasn’t truly a  _ massive  _ surprise, considering his username. It had been the most information he’d divulged. Maybe he’d play him in a tournament one day. He’d never look at a setter the same way again unfortunately. But, well, Hajime would take what he could get. Even if it wasn’t necessarily what he wanted. 

Like the fact that he was currently pining over another man. 

So well, yeah, he’d take what he could get, but being drunk texted about how cute somebody else was wasn’t a good feeling in the slightest. Especially when he was also  _ extremely  _ intoxicated and was drunk texting, which definitely didn’t make Hajime worried. Not at all. He just hoped whoever was on the other end had gotten home safe, and not knowing what happened to him positively stressed him out. 

That and, well, his chances going down the drain. It was hard to know if he even had chances, but they were few and far between now. 

During practice it was early, and he was tired and late from staying up all night worrying and staring at his screen for a response. Added on to stress from finals, space_setter being completely inactive, and Oikawa’s shitty tosses and even shitter hangover look (even though he still looked gorgeous which was  _ completely unfair _ ) Hajime was ready to snap. He kind of wished it hadn’t been Oikawa though. The look of genuine hurt before being swept away by carefully curated boredom and plastic smiles made him feel terrible, especially coming from someone like Oikawa who barely showed anything other than pleasantries. His personality was truly garbage (even if he was, possible, occasionally, very attracted to him when changing in the club room. Sometimes his eyes couldn’t help travel down his finely muscled and lean chest, and down his navel and- ). 

His phone buzzed.

**space_setter: so, uh, last night huh (O.O)**

**iwaspik3r: Yeah. Glad to see you got home safe.**

Hajime stared at his phone, glued to the screen. His knee bounced up and down at his apartment, sitting on the slightly ratty but comfortable couch. He chugged a coffee which definitely wasn’t helping his anticipation. 

**space_setter: thanks (** **´｡• ω •｡`)** **my friends had to drag me out of that party lol. i was waaaasted if u couldn’t tell**

Hajime bit his lip. Well, fuck it. He might as well bite the bullet. See what he was up against in the crush department. 

**iwaspik3r: Yeah, I could definitely tell. So, want to talk about that guy you were crushing on? I won’t tell anyone :p**

He hesitantly added an emoji of some sorts, hoping it would  _ maybe _ make the other guy open up more. Maybe. Holy shit he felt like he was twelve. This was so ridiculous. He leaned back and groaned, immediately snapping back to attention after a short  _ bzzt _ from hit phone.

**space_setter: OMG did u just use an emoji??? did you hit ur head** **( : ౦ ‸ ౦ : )** **do i need to give you medical attention???**

**iwaspik3r: Shut up or if I see you in real life I’ll beat you up.**

**iwaspik3r: I’m here for you though if you need to talk to someone. It’s not like I can really judge you when I don’t know who you are.**

Was that too forward? Oh god, how to hit unsend how to hit unsend, where’s the unsend button- 

_ Bzzz.  _

**space_setter: ok then, i guess {{ ( >.<) }}**

His eyes widened, and Hajime’s attention could not in any way be taken off of that screen. If the world ended his eyes would still be open on that screen. Hajime was holding it so hard his normally tan knuckles were as pale as paper. He could only distantly feel his cat rubbing across his legs.

**space_setter: since you already know from a certain drunk someone** **(￢_￢)**

**space_setter: i’m a setter on a volleyball team for uni, and there’s a guy that i really like on it. i’m pretty sure he’s straight though, or at least doesn't like me. i can’t say i blame him but it still really fucking sucks** **(-ω-、)**

Hajime was on the edge of his seat (literally) as he watched the three dots. And well, it might be terrible of him to say, but he felt his heart soar out of his chest at the thought of the other guy not liking him back. He didn’t know why he wouldn’t because to him he was perfect, but still, some people are idiots. And that particular idiot left him an opening. 

**space_setter: idk, it just makes me sad. i haven’t liked someone this much since highschool (T-T)**

**space_setter: ok, that’s it! no more for u! i can’t let you know too much of me, or where would the fun be!**

Hajime felt his heart sink a little. It’d be nice if he knew just a little more, just enough that he could stop thinking anyone he passed could possibly be him. Just enough information where he could know him even a little better. 

**iwaspik3r: They’re an idiot if they don’t see how amazing you are.**

Oh my God. Did he really just send that? Did he really,  _ just send that?  _

**space_setter: everyone knows how amazing i am (=_=) only few can truly appreciate it tho (** **─‿‿─)♡**

**space_setter: i don’t think you’d be saying that in real life, but it’s still sweet (^- ^) if i didn’t know any better i’d say u have a crush on me** **( >ω^)**

Hajime swallowed. 

**iwaspik3r: But what if we did meet in real life? We could meet at a public spot, or you could bring a friend or something.**

There was silence on the other end for a while, and Hajime worried that he’d broken something that was very precarious in the first place. 

**space_setter: nope, where would the fun be?? if we know each other then we can’t pass each other on the street without knowing who the other is only to never truly figure it out. c’mon, where’s the romance**

Hajime buried his face in his hands and tried not to scream. He barely succeeded. But, on second look- romance? That was a… good sign. Good sign? No, great sign. It looked like he wouldn’t get anywhere else tonight. He had already gotten a lot more than he thought he would, so it would probably be best to continue playing it off and get what he could. 

Iwaizumi Hajime finished his coffee and continued typing.


	3. you got got got it bad

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hanamaki and matsukawa make a realization, and oikawa decides to grow a pair.

Oikawa couldn’t stop smiling or staring at his phone, which was a stupid thing itself, and an even more idiotic thing because of a stranger who could respond to his jokes so well, and who he could confide in with so much trust. Maybe part of the trust was that he didn’t know who he was. 

It’s not that Oikawa was ashamed of himself. He knew he had the occasional good quality that he could parade around to hide the whole lot of bad, but after opening up to someone about so much and then being rejected was a little too much for him to take at this point. 

And well, he hoped it didn’t make him an even shittier person if rereading the messages that had been sent made him feel a little better about himself, and made the sting of Iwaizumi’s rejection hit a little less hard. 

Well, it couldn’t even be called a rejection. Oikawa hadn’t even had a chance to be completely fair. 

“Is he rereading the messages again?” Hanamaki leaned over the couch, peering over Oikawa’s shoulder and plucking the phone out of his hands. Oikawa squawked in indignation, jutting out his lip. 

“Makki, you can’t just invade my privacy. What if I had sent nudes or something? Do you really want to see my dick?” He said, reaching for the small device. Hanamaki just maneuvered it farther out of his reach. 

“As if you would. Seen a dick once, seen a dick many times.” The other boy frowned as he kept scrolling through the messages, Oikawa making desperate lunges over the couch to take it back. 

“Wait what?’ He blinked as the words fully registered. “Whose dick are you seeing Makki?” 

“Why do you keep turning him down? He seems cute. I know for sure his cat is. That’s a bonus for him.” Oikawa groaned, Hanamaki skillfully ignoring his attempt at changing the subject. Well this was just embarrassing, and it only kept getting worse. 

“Well what’s this?” He murmured, his eyebrows raising and a devious grin spreading on his face as he feigned a shocked gasp. “Oikawa Tooru, did you drunk text this seemingly very sweet stranger on the internet about your big, fat, massive crush on Iwaizumi Hajime?”

Matsukawa finally looked up from his studying at Oikawa’s apartment’s kitchen island, the pen he was chewing frozen in his mouth. “He what?” He could see his friend’s cheeks puffing with barely contained laughter, and Oikawa could feel the back of his neck getting warm which was decidedly  _ not  _ the move. 

“Makki, Makki, Makki! I’ll never ever toss to you again in my entire life if you don’t give me that back.” He was interrupted by Matsukawa’s obnoxious laugh. He could feel the blush starting to heat up his cheeks which was once again,  _ not the move. _ “Mattsun I swear to God I will never pay for any more of your stupid overpriced coffee drinks, or that gross cheese steak thing you like way too much.” Yeah, he’s resorted to threats, but Oikawa’s last resort was completely needed in this case. 

“I think that might be worth it, what do you think Matsukawa?” Hanamaki was still reading the messages a traitorous Oikawa sent and he wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow him up and never spit him back out. Oikawa had thought about it before, and he thought he’d be a good hermit. It’d be a shame for his good looks to go to waste, but sacrifices must be made when dealing with two massive dickwads masquerading as best friends. 

“You guys are so mean to me!” He started wailing, and he prayed the neighbors weren’t home. “Mattsun, I’m going to cry!” If he entered a little sniffle it might be more convincing, or just annoying enough to get them to relinquish his phone. 

Hanamki’s eyes widened, and he looked like he was about to go into shock. Oikawa was about to almost get worried, before Hanamaki’s  _ extremely  _ loud laugh came out of his ungodly lips. He bent over, bracing his hands on his knees as he kept laughing harder and harder, wheezing by the end of his fit. “Oh my God, no way. No  _ fucking  _ way dude.” He could barely get the words about between giggles, coughing a little as he choked them out. 

Looking at the phone again he burst into another bout, wiping a tear from his eye he repeated his last statement. “No. Fucking. Way.” And Oikawa was thoroughly confused, which he didn’t tend to be, and was a rather unpleasant feeling for a self (and others) described control freak like himself. Now he was a little uncomfortable. 

Hanamaki showed something on the phone to Matsukawa, and mouthed something that Oikawa didn’t quite get, which made his other friend start to die of laughter as well. “What the fuck. What are the chances?” Matsukawa and Hanamaki were both giggling and Oikawa didn’t like it in the slightest. They were like two hyenas, and Oikawa was their dinner which was quite the weird feeling. 

“Okay, if you guys are done behaving like kindergartners I’ll take my phone back.” He said it in a sing-songy voice, and was surprised when he took it back with little to no resistance. Ok, this was even  _ weirder  _ if that was possible. Oikawa was now, officially, suspicious. Looking through his messages, no new ones were sent. So what were they laughing about?

“I know I’m entertaining and charming, but that was a little excessive.” He eyed his friends up and down, Matsukawa texting someone so urgently he wondered if his fingers were about to fly off. 

“No, I think that was a little underwhelming if anything. You’re lucky I didn’t make t-shirts to commemorate this moment and how stupid you are.” Hanamaki sat by Matsukawa, sighing a little bit. His eyes were still crinkled from laughter.

Oikawa harrumphed, grabbing a bag of chips from his pantry. He refrained from stomping a little, because as far as he could tell no real damage was done, and honestly he wasn’t even mad. Just…  _ extremely  _ puzzled. Matsukawa had gone back to studying, a shaky smile as he went through his business textbook. 

He knew his friends were weird. Just look at Oikawa. But this felt off in a particular sort of way that grated against his perfectly straight teeth and chilled his spine. Popping a chip in his mouth, he looked over Matsukawa’s shoulder wondering if there was something hidden in his very meticulous notes. 

But well, there was nothing. And Oikawa bit down on the salty chip with a loud crunch, pretending the whole exchange hadn’t occurred despite Hanamaki’s occasional snorts and giggles. 

✮

Oikawa wasn’t sure if practice was awkward in the few days after Iwaizumi’s slight outburst, but he was sure that it had been resolved when he had been presented milk bread rather unceremoniously after being hit on the shoulder. Afterwards it had been as it always had for the most part. Despite a few strange looks from Kunimi, Matsukawa, and Hanamki, the only thing that had really changed was Oikawa’s tendencies to avoid looking at Iwaizumi only when necessary. When he did, there was a weird thickness at the back of his throat and a strange twisting of knots in his stomach. He was half ready to get it checked out before he realized he was just stupid and hopelessly in… not like; that was too grade school. And it wasn’t just him craving a relationship with just anyone, or being desperate. 

And he truly didn’t think it was his idea of love. 

He had seen love before, in movies. It had been this all consuming force, a wild fire that blazed everything in its path, a black hole that sucked people deeper and deeper, that drove them mad until the climax of the movie ended and they settled peacefully in a small cottage magically outside of major towns but completely isolated. Oikawa didn’t feel that way about Iwaizumi. It was a far gentler feeling, though no less powerful. It was a brief hitch in his breath when Iwaizumi smiled at him, his canines a little sharp, the left one the slightest bit crooked. It was the slight pause he felt when he would make eye contact accidentally, the lazy narrow of his eyes and slight curl of his lips as they would break it. It was the way Iwaizumi could make up for a slight bad toss, and still absolutely crush the opponent’s defense even when the set went too short (though Oikawa was proud to say that happened rarely). It was the way Iwaizumi made up for the ways Oikawa could lack when talking to their teammates, and encouraging them, or helping guide the first year’s swings and receives to be even better. Iwaizumi did that. He was the stability that Oikawa so needed.

Oikawa didn’t know what to call that feeling. 

He flopped on his bed, bringing his knees up to his chest. It was dumb to be psychoanalyzing himself like this when he had a major physics test coming up. It was dumb to do this  _ period _ . Letting out a heavy sigh, he opened his phone and checked for new messages. Maybe he should meet up with that guy in real life. It’s not like things with Iwaizumi were going to go anywhere, so there was really no harm in trying to move on. He truly did like the person he was messaging with. So, well, why didn’t he give it a try? 

Oikawa bit his lip, his knee beginning to bounce. 

**space_setter: i know this is kinda weird**

**space_setter: and really out of the blue and completely contradictory**

**space_setter: (i promise no stalkers stole my phone** **(☆ω☆)** **)**

Wow, he was not very good at getting straight to the point. As he typed out his final message, he pretended his fingers weren’t shaking or made many more typos than usual. 

**space_setter: well, what if we met in person?**

  
**_Read._ **


	4. try to keep it hiden

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hajime's out with the boys as soon as he gets a very important text

Hajime had almost missed his stop on the metro. 

He was lucky someone had hit his shoulder on their way out and reminded him that yes, in fact, there was a world outside of his phone that consisted of two of his best friends waiting for him at a ramen place in Shibuya. 

As the doors closed behind him, he whipped his phone out again, staring at the screen with his eyes peeled back to their largest. He blinked. Looked again. Hit his thigh (ow), looked again. And the message was still there. 

_ Holy. _

_ Fucking.  _

_ Shit. _

No fucking way. Hajime thought he went into shock. He might’ve. It couldn’t have come at a worse time though, as Hajime had plans and was busy for once in his life. 

He put his phone away, his hands drumming on his thighs as he headed to the ramen place, acting as if he almost didn’t trip over the stair in the entrance because of how much that text kept running through his mind. 

What the hell had changed? Did he finally give up on that other guy? Was he just joking? If it was sincere he felt that was a little too much to hope for, even though a secret part of him was singing at the thought of it. Which was utterly ridiculous. Hajime didn’t  _ sing  _ in any way shape or form. The last time he had done karaoke he was five, and he had erased all memories of the encounter and absolutely refused to believe that there was a video circulating out there on his mother’s phone. 

“Yo, Iwaizumi.” Hajime felt a light hand on his shoulder as another man with light hair came up to his side, an easy smile gracing his face. The birthmark near his eye crinkled at the smile. 

“Sugawara, hey. Sorry I was a bit late.” Hajime rubbed the back of his neck as he noticed his other friends, Akaashi’s dark glasses peering over the head of Daichi slumped form next to him. 

“No problem, we just got here too. Akaashi’s the only one who was on time I think.” Sugawara grinned sheepishly, sliding into the seat next to Daichi, while Hajime sat on the end of the bar next to Akaashi who nodded at him. 

“I was.” He rolled his eyes and sipped his beer even though Hajime could see the slight curve of his lips. 

“What’s got him down?” Hajime jutted his chin at Daichi whose eye’s were completely glazed over. At Hajime’s comment he winced, his eyes closing with a pained sigh. 

Sugawara leaned over Daichi and said in a mock whisper, “He didn’t do too well

on a recent test.” Daichi groaned, and Sugawara smiled and shrugged before

innocently sipping on the water already at his seat. 

Hajime ordered a water as Daichi continued to mope, taking in the break 

of conversation to check his phone. No new messages. 

**iwaspik3r: Hey, I’m busy right now but I will answer soon.**

Hajime hesitated. It had taken him too many tries to form a coherent response.

**iwaspik3r: :)**

Wait, that might’ve been too much. A smiley face? Did that come off a little too

desperate? Holy fuck was he stupid. Worrying over a goddamn smiley face like he was

thirteen-

“Iwaizumi!” Akaashi put his hand in front of Hajime’s face, breaking off his train of thought as Hajime blinked. He looked up to see the waiter looking at him expectantly, Sugawara and Daichi looking at him strangely. 

“Oh, uh, I’ll get a Shio Ramen.” Hajime put his phone away, resolving to ignore the sudden change of heart of a faceless man on the internet as he met his friends' strange gazes. 

“Iwaizumi, is everything alright? We had called you a couple times.” Daichi frowned, his failed test apparently off his mind. He had a tendency to get like this when anyone in their friend group got a little too closed off.

“Oh yeah, everything’s okay. Just some personal stuff.” Which was clearly not the right thing to say in front of friends of multiple years, whose eyes started to narrow suspiciously. 

“Personal stuff? Personal stuff you can’t share with us?” Sugawara’s thick eyebrows furrowed, the wrinkle between them even starker in the bright lighting. His arms were braced against the light wood of the bar, Daichi’s forearm pressed against his, a little too close to not be casual. Huh. That wasn’t very unexpected, but also did explain the hastily planned get together. 

“Well, I mean. It’s, well, complicated.” Hajime stared into his water, his suddenly dry throat craving a sip. He happily obliged the demands, avoiding looking into Akaashi’s probing eyes. 

“Complicated? Do tell.” Sugawara smiled nicely, if not a tad deviously, Daichi looking at him curiously. Out of all of them, Suga had the biggest tendency to meddle with the rest.

“Well, I mean. The thing is, I kind of, well.” Hajime cleared his throat. He was usually good at getting to the point. “I met this guy, online. And we’ve been talking for a few months I guess. And he kind of texted me and asked if he wanted to meet in person. After insisting about not meeting. Today. Right before I got here.” Hajime kept adding on, his friend’s faces getting even more twisted as he talked. 

“Wait wait wait. So, you’ve never even met him? Do you even know his real name? What he looks like?” Daichi eyed him, no doubt thinking the worst. Which was, to be fair, fair, and he fully expected this response from a policeman in training. He also hadn’t expected actually telling Daichi about it. The other guy had seriously awful timing.

“Well, no.” He had to start incorporating more sentence beginning variety. “But I know a lot about him, and we should be meeting in a public place.” Hajime added the last part after he saw Daichi’s somewhat slack jaw. “Like, a lot about him.”

“Oh, so you don’t know his name or what he looks like. What do you actually know about him?” Daichi crossed his arms, Sugawara peeping over his shoulder with a grin as he turned to fully face Hajime. Akaashi leaned back, looking faintly amused. 

“Well, he lives in Tokyo, and he plays volleyball. He’s the setter on his team in university, and he’s my age. He liked this guy for a while on his team too.” Daichi clearly thought this was a hoax, and Hajime could feel himself getting defensive and spew random shit out. Like the fact that he had been into someone else. “Well, the other night he got really drunk. I don’t know. He’s an actual person at least. I don’t think a robot can very accurately imitate terrible motor functions.” 

“Oh, okay, so he likes someone else and he miraculously plays volleyball just like how you do, in the same city. What a coincidence. He also is somehow your age? That’s quite a feat. How do you even know he’s a real person, and not just some random creep?” Hajime could feel himself getting heated, mostly because he could sense the truth in his statements, and he had already put too much faith in this mystery guy to back off now.

“I don’t know, I just know!” Daichi’s face softened, and Hajime continued in a softer tone of voice. “I think he’s real. I mean, even if he’s not I can just leave and pretend it never happened. Text messages can be deleted. Plus, I haven’t even sent him a picture of my face, or my own name.” He conveniently left out the fact that he’d tried to before being shut down. Sugawara tilted his head, sitting fully in his chair as Daichi started to relax back into his somewhat mopey state.   
“Well, I hope it works out. What’s his username?” Their ramen was placed in front of them, Sugawara starting on his as soon as it was placed in front of him. 

“Oh, it’s space_setter.” Hajime slurped down some noodles, Akaashi stretching before starting on his. As soon as he leaned forward Akaashi’s glasses got fogged up, and he scrunched his nose up. 

The conversation stopped as Sugawara’s eyes widened, the noodles stuck between his open mouth and the bowl. Daichi lightly touched the other boy’s back, and Sugawara shook it off, laughing softly. “Don’t worry, I just remembered about an assignment I have due soon.” There was a glint in his eyes that hadn’t been there before, and it made Hajime uneasy. Sugawara got that look a lot.

Hajime was about halfway done with his ramen when Daichi cleared his throat, and turned to face Hajime and Akaashi. 

“Okay, so, we have a little announcement to make. A week ago, some stuff happened, and it came out that me and Suga had mutual feelings for one another. We’re starting to date.” Daichi was solemn, and Sugawara’s smile was wide. It turned out Daichi was better at getting straight to the point than he was. 

But it did make Hajime smile as well. He was glad they were happy. 

“Took you long enough. Honestly, it’s a miracle it hasn’t happened sooner.” Akaashi smirked, rubbing some of the steam off of his glasses. 

“Wait, you knew?”

“I mean, yeah, it was obvious Suga. Was it supposed to be a secret?” Akaashi raised an eyebrow, Hajime snorting. 

It was nice to be with friends. 

“Dude, you’ve only been giving each other longing, wistful looks since high school. It’s been  _ painfully  _ obvious. You’re lucky Deadchi over here is as oblivious as a rock.” Hajime slapped Daichi's back over Akaashi, earning a sharp glare that just made him laugh harder.

“Oh my God, it happened once,  _ once _ . Will you ever let me live it down?” Daichi groaned, his face heating up as Suga kissed his cheek. 

“No.” 

They all laughed at that, and when he left the ramen shop after a beer or two Hajime felt lighter than he had in weeks. His steps were instantly weighed down as he felt his phone buzz, and the resulting message made his stomach drop farther into the ground. 

**space_setter: okay, look, so i know it’s hard to believe someone who you’ve never seen before but**

**space_setter: here’s i guess slight confirmation i exist?? it’s not a stock photo or anywhere on the internet so you can’t google reverse search it** **☆ｏ(＞＜；)○** **idk, i just thought you might be more willing if i could prove my existence**

**space_setter: this is me and one of my teammates (the stupid hot one i used to like)**

And while the face was blurred on the picture that was sent, and the number and name on the jersey was, it still sent ripples of shock coursing through his body, because he knew only one person who made that expression that was still recognizable beneath the editing, and knew only one person that he had seen everyday for the past few months that wore turquoise and white with that shade of brown hair, and knew the exact photo that was also on his own phone, minus the poorly drawn devil horns and tail and scribbled out face that was identical to his own, and most certainly knew what number would be on the jersey he was wearing, because that was Oikawa Tooru’s lockscreen, and if that was really Oikawa Tooru that was messaging him, it would mean Oikawa Tooru had liked Hajime, and Hajime was in love with Oikawa Tooru.

It was a prank.

For sure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry this took a hot sec, but i hope you enjoy!


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